Thursday, 10 April 2014

Horses for courses but let's consider Racehorses who are re-homed

From the amount of horse readings we have done recently on ex race horses we felt there was a need to write a wee article on these horses in particular.There are many different varieties of activities for horses to be part of, let's think, what kind of different horses do we find :

Show jumpers, Trotters, Race horses and there are many more. But for this post we are merely pointing out that each different type of E.E. (Equine Events) that horses are trained for and all these horses are trained in totally different ways. Trotters - on the move, extending their legs etc. but as a more important point there is the mental training - trot trot trot trot - extend those legs, keep going as fast as you can with your knees at a specific height but only in trot.

Show jumpers and dressage horses and other similar types of training can be particularly precise, articulate and specific to the job in hand/hoof. They are taught/trained/encouraged to standstill for mounting, to be able to stand still for the judges, they have instant speed for against the clock competitions and can cope with this for short periods of time. They are taught/encouraged to stop for dismounting and to stand still for mounting. These abilities not only give them an automatic inbuilt mental ability to stop and do what is asked of them – it's more personal and a more one to one relationship.

Where as with racehorses speed is of the essence, speed and the ability to jump are joined together often with force (and numbness! As per the posting dated below) in brief, often, this type of horse learns to measure distances naturally but at speed, they need to raise their front legs/bodies/rider to get over the jump again often with force and with other horses running along side this kind of goads them along. Rather than them being hit by the stick all the time, some of them learn to run as fast as they can – purely because they don't want to be hit. Some racehorses are injected in the legs before hand so that any previous pain disappears for the race - but this does not happen all the time. However, mentally they therefore are almost self trained to run, run, run, run, run, run or to stay on the move all the time. So to ask a race horse to stand still is as foreign to them as it would be for a child who had suddenly been told to eat with a knife and fork when they had been used to using their fingers for 5 or 8 years– it feels totally foreign to them and takes training to encourage them to use the knife and fork correctly. Or perhaps it is more like someone learning to drive a manual car after being used to driving an automatic or being used to drive on the right hand side of the road then all of a sudden being forced to drive on the opposite side of the road . . it's confusing, foreign and an unknown area altogether.

So, ultimately race horses are a special category, ones who are trained to be on the move 24/7, both mentally and physically, who are used to - being ridden in a certain way, As a few examples although in different gaits : take a look at the different seating positions in these few photographs :

So, in a racehorses mind in theory and in practice riding them in traditional fashion seems totally different and foreign . . . one to take in to account

They are also used to numerous people buzzing around them filled with chat and buzz which ultimately releases excitement within them. When not racing they are often tied to a walker (a motorised machine which is set for a specific time (like an oven timer) and keeps them exercising and rarely do they experience a one to one relationship, so once they learn that it is okay to stand still they can become extremely loyal and dedicated animals to keep, but you can imagine adjusting to a 'normal' horses life is extremely foreign to them to start with or is something that they just don't know how to do at all until re-trained. Similar to someone coming out of the army – when they have been self trained, almost automatically drill trained/drained.

Some racing yards have little respect for race horses as individuals and/or see them as 'money spinners'. Some racehorses are raced to the ground, often injected to dull all previous injuries or aching hooves, it doesn't take much to research all this.

So what are we saying with all this, well, what we are saying here is, if you decide to take on a retired racehorse, please remember they have a history, sometimes a pained history, of both physical and mental speed who have not been trained to be an every day hacker (although some racing stables do in fact encourage this but very few, these being perhaps more the smaller yards ). They have often been beaten to run as fast as they can and, like elephants in work, they would rather do the very best they can than be beaten with a stick or legs as they run their hearts in to the ground as they race round the track. Often their spirits are broken and knowing how to relax is an unknown area and their lives have been filled with structure and routine of a different kind.

So as a resume:

1 Be prepared initially to be able to jump on as they move

2 Be prepared that they will not be able to stand still for long

3 Be prepared for them to want to beat any other horse they are out riding with

4 Be prepared that they might not be used to being outside free

5 Be prepared for them to be scared of too much leg and stick aid

6 Be prepared for them to be anxious if there are a lot of people around

7 Be prepared for them to react in a crowd

8 Be prepared for them to react in a herd

9 Be prepared for them to not be able to relax

10 Be prepared for them to be filled with excitement amongst crowds – they pick up on applauses, screams, shouts and jovial screaming and coarse voices. 11 Be prepared to ride slightly shorter to start with

12 Remember your horse might have experienced a fall at great speed

12 Try and imagine what it was like for them to have to run as fast as they could, like athletes - some would be naturals - some not-

After re-training

1 Be prepared for them to be loyal and dedicated

2 Given patience and often time be prepared for them to enjoy the peace and quiet

3 Be prepared for them to understand and fully enjoy body language instead of verbal language

4 Be prepared for them to be as obedient as a dog if given the right understanding and re-training.

5 Be prepared for them to lift up a hoof as an every day occurrence

6 Be prepared for them to put up with as many rugs as you wish to place on them

7 Be prepared for them to enjoy a happy medium of speed and non demanding body language

8 Once retrained, like greyhounds they can be the most caring and understanding of horses as long as 50/50 communication is understood.

Thank you for giving these amazing creatures the chance of a loving home where they can learn to relax and go at a speed most comfortable to them with their ears forward and not as is for some, as fast as humans dictate often with their ears back. However, for some they are born runners, if this is the case, as they age, try and encourage them to slow down, otherwise their health will suffer.On behalf of many - thank you.

If you would like us to help you with your horse, please do contact us either at this LINK

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For those of you who are not on facebook - these two photographs with the comments below have been forwarded by a Client of ours - Thank you Michelle

"I just feel they are totally miss understood I have seen peoples reactions when they say what kind is your horse and I say tb everything changes in them and it is terrible because every horse no matter of breeding has the ability to be what people mould them into and it just so happens they are moulded to racing then we are basically turning there world upside down asking them to change so we should have the patience to be able to let them learn again sorry for the rant it just annoys me so much xx"

"

"

" This boy knew nothing else"

"Apart from being dirty, he has learned that being relaxed is good and will happily go out in a herd xx

Our reply to these were as follow:

"Being allowed to roll in mud is often a luxury for race horses"

" How wonderful that this facebook post has been shared all the way over in New York . . . tremendous . . let's give all these race horses wishes a plug here . . let's get this posted in other parts of the world . . . thank you New York".

11th August 2014 - An article some of you may be interested in . . LINK

2 comments:

I just feel they are totally miss understood I have seen peoples reactions when they say what kind is your horse and I say tb everything changes in them and it is terrible because every horse no matter of breeding has the ability to be what people mould them into and it just so happens they are moulded to racing then we are basically turning there world upside down asking them to change so we should have the patience to be able to let them learn again sorry for the rant it just annoys me so much xx M

I took on an ex racer who proved to be the most loyal and trusting horse I have ever had the privilege to look after not easy to start with but worth all the hard work I and he put in 17 years he spent teaching me how to look after a horse he left me aged 26 a very sad day but I will never forget him and the fun we had together